'Hundreds of thousands' of parents could be putting kids at risk

Coroner Alan Walsh recorded a conclusion of accidental death.

He warned other parents: "There are probably hundreds of thousands of parents who may have infants sleeping in their bed this evening. But every one of those parents potentially puts their infant child at risk."

Archie's family was a "loving" and "caring" one, the coroner added, and he had everything he could wish for.

But the baby was just 30 days old when he died.

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The coroner added: "He had no health problems apart from a cold. He was well looked after and on November 17 he had enjoyed a normal day.

"He was put to bed and woke up for his feed at about 1.30am.

"After the feed, he was placed in bed with his parents.

‘’It is likely that that had happened with other children and there had never been any problems with that situation.

"Nobody could have foreseen what would happen in the next few hours and it is unimaginable to wake up and find a baby unresponsive.

"You have my greatest sympathy.

“We know that Archie died and he did have some injuries probably arising from the co-sleeping.

"They were not the cause of death but would have caused problems with his breathing which led to his death.

"Co-sleeping is a main factor in relation to sudden infant deaths.

“One thing that can arise from Archie’s tragic death is an awareness.

"This is a risk that can be avoided and a death that can be prevented.

"You would never have imagined this would have happened. You provided the perfect home, you were the perfect parents and I am extremely sorry.”

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"In the bed that night was me on the right, our son and Archie’s older brother slept between us as he had been struggling to sleep, and Nicky was on the left.

“Nicky fed Archie whilst he was in bed and we lay him on the left side on the edge of his bed instead of in his Moses basket.

"Nicky must have fallen asleep and then when he awoke he found Archie was unresponsive.

"We called 999 straightaway and performed CPR."

The death came as "horrible shock" for the whole family, Keeley added.

The devastated mum said: "We were all so excited for Archie to come along, his brothers were amazing with him.

"We did not get to see his first smile.

"Not a day goes by where we don’t think about our Archie.

"He will forever be in our hearts.”

'Risk not worth taking'

A Home Office pathologist said co-sleeping next to a baby was just not worth the risk.

Dr Charles Wilson recorded the cause of death as sudden infant death linked with adult co-sleeping.

He told the inquest hearing: “We know that there is an increased risk of sudden infant death in children that co-sleep with adults.

"It is possible to block an infant’s airway.

“It is a massive thing that many parents do co-sleep with their infants.

"It is an increased risk and in my view it is not worth taking.”

A police detective praised Archie's "doting" parents but also stressed that it was safer to have separate sleeping areas.

Archie Marsh died after being put into bed with his parents but police said his death was not suspicious (Image: PA)

DI Nathan Percival from Greater Manchester Police said: “There was no previous history or anything that caused any concern in relation to the family.

“Nicky mentioned going to football practice that evening and having a couple of cans of lager on return.

"There was absolutely no suggestion of any more than that, two cans were found at the address.

“I could tell that they were caring and doting parents. The home is a lovely family, caring home.

"There were photographs and toys everywhere. It was just a lovely family environment. It could be described as a perfect home for them to be brought up in.

“There was nothing suspicious or any evidence of any third party involvement in the death.”

“The key for myself and the police in general is that these deaths are preventable, this can happen to the most caring and doting parents. We just want to get the message across to have separate sleeping areas and separate feeding areas.”

Email liam.trim@reachplc.com with your opinions or other local news stories.